Circle of Revenge

Robbie is an idealistic and empathetic teenager. He has a ``sort-of'' girlfriend, a car, unsympathetic parents and no close friends. When he is fired from his job at the Burger Bowl, he answers an ad from the psychology department of a nearby university. It seems ideal: $15 per hour, after school, no hard work. He gets the job, but the professor in charge of the experiment, unbeknownst to Robbie, is looking for revenge: his son and wife were among the ``disappeared'' in the miitary-controlled South American country where he had been working. Robbie's politically active girlfriend tries to convince him that something is wrong; not until he almost kills his best friend, Carlos, the son of the deposed dictator, does Robbie realize what has been happening to him. By then it is too late. With elements culled from national news, this thin novel reads like a made-for-TV movie. The timely subject matter may appeal to some, but motive and characterization are sketchy, and the omniscient third-person narration never allows the reader to feel for any of the players. Ages 12-up. (October)